Crimson Blood
by Izreina Maxwell
Summary: AU. The pirates are in search of a treasure more powerful than anything in Draconian history. And it's important to Marvelous that he find it before Zangyack does. Everything depends on it.


AN: So... It's been a while. Had a lot going on over the past year. Trying very hard to get some writing done. I hate leaving things unfinished. But new ideas pop into my head all the time. And I have to put it down before I forget it. Like this. I wanted to try my hand at something completely AU. But I'd like to get some feedback before I make much more out of it. I do kinda sorta have a direction this is going, that's why I named it what I did. But I've been second-guessing my writings a lot, which is why I haven't updated my other stories much. Or at all, really. So I'm putting this out there, for now.

Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger

Crimson Blood

Introduction

Gai Ikari. The silver dragons were renowned for their vast knowledge of the Draconian people. Though young, not one of his comrades questioned the fact that he knew his stuff. His advice was often unwanted, not because they doubted its accuracy, but because he was too loud and spoke too quickly. The others gave credit for his enthusiasm, but he was so excited, his words often jumbled together and by the time they'd deciphered the meaning, their questions would be invalid because he'd be off on another topic.

Aside from his knowledge, which helped them out of more than one dilemma, he was ridiculously loyal to them. They were unsure of the young dragon when he first approached them, but he has more than proven himself. The Zangyack Empire had just begun a second attack on his country. Their first, some years ago, failed, spectacularly, but at a great cost to his kinsmen.

Ahim de Famille. The pale pink dragons prided themselves as pacifists. But their lack of force had made them an easy target for Zangyack. Ahim's kinsmen had no hope. It's unknown how many survived the massacre, but Ahim vowed that the lives lost were not lost in vain. Zangyack used her country as a message. Pacifism does not guarantee safety. Famille refused to be annexed. So they were annihilated. Ahim was going to show her people that a species is most dangerous when it is endangered. If their princess stood against their murderers and fought, the souls of the lost would find peace, and it would give her people the courage to do the same. Pacifism is nice in an ideal world, but no world with Zangyack is ideal.

Having not been used to weapons and violence, Ahim's start with her comrades was every bit as rocky as Gai's. But their patience had been a surprise, even to themselves. And she had been more than willing to do anything they asked to better herself in combat. Well, almost anything. The leader of their little band had made some questionable requests in the beginning, but Ahim knew he was making fun of her. At lease, she hoped he was making fun of her.

Don Dogoier. The green dragons were intellectuals, scholars. Though he was on the lower end of that totem pole, his expertise in mechanics was without question. While his country was not a part of the Zangyack Empire, to avoid conflict, the elders accepted Zangyack laws. While this was a safer route than their pink neighbors had taken, even Don knew it was only a matter of time before Zangyack tightened the noose.

But if you had asked him before, he would have been content to just let it happen. He hadn't chosen to be involved with these so-called pirates, not at first. He was shanghaied into service to repair their galleon after a particularly nasty battle with a Zangyack battleship. The longer he stayed, the more he realized that he'd become a much more valuable asset as a pirate, than a mere shop owner. Plus, even though he tries to deny it, he would only admit to himself that he wanted a taste of adventure. He got more than what he bargained for, but he wouldn't trade it for the world.

Luka Millfy. There was never any doubt that the gold dragons were the most greedy of Draconians. Although, that's not entirely accurate. 'Greed' is a word that generally means something bad. Zangyack was greedy. Gai would be more accurate when he said their gold brethren were the best at financial management. And it came as no surprise that they were one of the races hit hardest by Zangyack. Zangyack would take, they would adjust. Zangyack would take more, they would make more adjustments. Then Zangyack took everything. And there was panic, riots that pitted brother against brother for survival. Zangyack was slowly driving the gold dragons to extinction. Starvation, dehydration, illnesses. Luka's own little sister was lost to an illness that could have been prevented. Luka had made a vow to take back every cent that Zangyack stole from them, and made sure each life lost was compensated with one of Zangyack's. They were going to fund a new home for the younglings left to fend for themselves, whether they want to or not.

Joining the pirates was a given. There was safety in numbers. And they shared her hatred for Zangyack. What she hadn't intended on happening was that they filled the emptiness in her life. No one could replace her little sister, but these pirates had become family, with a bond tighter than even that of blood.

Joe Gibken. The blue dragons were once allied with Zangyack, a mutually beneficial agreement that no one remembered the terms to. But over the course of time, the blue dragons found themselves less and less as allies and more and more as slaves. The blue dragons were master fighters, their techniques in various styles and weapons considered to be more of an art form than anything. But Zangyack exploited them, and the blue dragons were nothing more than pawns in their armies, using their superior technique and numbers to the fullest advantage.

Joe didn't know how many of his kind remained, but he knew that if he was going to die at Zangyack's hands, he was going to do it fighting against them. He hated doing their dirty work, most everyone does. But he couldn't stand them slaughtering innocent children to make an example of them, or for any other reason. He won't ever regret helping that one family escape. Punishment for that had been severe, but the end result was that he knew he was destined for something else. Betrayal meant death, but the sacrifice of one of his kinsmen gave him the opportunity for escape. And it was in his comrades now that he trusted his life, especially his captain.

Captain Marvelous. While he wore the color red, it was difficult to discern his species. The red dragons had been extinct since the beginning of Zangyack's reign, and that was a long time ago. And while the others freely slipped between their dragon and human forms, none of them had ever seen Marvelous' dragon form. In fact, they weren't even sure Marvelous was Draconian. Humans were rare in this part of the world, but not unheard of. Their captain purposefully kept his past to himself, revealing information only if it was relevant to a current situation. But with the little they've learned, it was clear his past wasn't a pleasant one. So regardless of their curiosity, none of them pressured him.

He was a strong man, even if he was human. The strength in which he fought Zangyack with inspired them.

But fighting Zangyack was just a bonus. Marvelous was a pirate. And he and his crew had set sail on a treasure hunt. The hunt just happened to lead them head to head against Zangyack nearly every time they turned around. This made their hunt all the more adventurous, and important. The treasure he sought was powerful. And if it had Zangyack's attention, it was vital that he and his crew found it first.


End file.
